7. Dang Head: One of Denver’s best-kept secrets is Jamie Smith, a singer-songwriter who will stop you in your tracks. (8 tonight, Suburban Home Records Stage in the Sanctuary; 7 p.m. Saturday, Pablo’s Coffee Stage at the Irish Rover.)

8. Overcasters: Out of the ashes of Tarmints, singer-guitarist Kurt Ottaway (of Twice Wilted) emerges with a new and completely different project. (10:15 p.m. tonight, Evergroove Stage at 3 Kings Tavern)

9. Jon Snodgrass (above): Drag the River never died. Snodgrass, one of the band’s singer-guitarists, carries the country torch in both his solo and band work. (8:45 p.m. Saturday, Suburban Home Records Stage in the Sanctuary.)

10. Maraca 5-0: Remember the unruly, instrumental psych-surf stylings of Maraca 5-0? So do we! And we’re thrilled to have the band on board for this big reunion show. (10:15 tonight, the Hornet.)

The UMS: An insider’s guide, by Lisa Gedgaudas

The lineup: The 8th annual Denver Post Underground Music Showcase has expanded to two days,
Aug. 1-2, with more than 120 local bands playing alongside DJs and comedians. This year, we have added an outdoor stage, a photographic diaplay by denverpost.com/reberb photographers, a Tetris tournament, Guitar Hero bouts, trivia, bingo, crafting, Mile High Sci-Fi, kissing booths and more.

How to get your wristbands: The cost for a wristband is $20 for a two-day pass. (you cannot buy a one-day pass, sorry!). 100 percent of the ticket proceeds go to the bands. After noon on Friday, Aug. 1, tickets will no longer be available online, only at the UMS. Buy or pick up your wristband at the box office, South Broadway Christian Church (Ellsworth Avenue and Lincoln Street), or Herman’s Hideaway (1578 S. Broadway). A wristband is good for access to all UMS shows, but know: Some events will be fuilled to capacity. Band sets are first-come, first-served.

The Map: Don’t get lost at the UMS! To see a map and a list of all the participating venues, click here

The shuttle: This year, most of the venues are again concentrated around Broadway and Ellsworth Avenue, but it extends a mile further to the south, at Herman’s Hideaway (1578 S. Broadway). UMS provides a shuttle service going to and from the Hi-Dive (7 S. Broadway) to Herman’s. The shuttle will head south from a stop in front of the Hi-Dive at to :00 and :30 mark every hour, picking up more passengers at the Skylark Lounge (140 S. Broadway) at the :05 and :35 marks. The shuttle will leave Herman’s heading north at the :15 and :45 marks of every hour, dropping passengers off at the Skylark Lounge. Soda, water and beer will be available on the shuttle. The shuttle’s hours of operation are from 8 p.m.-1 a.m. Friday and Saturday.

The Tetris! Tetris and other video-game goodness gets started at 7p.m. Friday and 8 p.m.
Saturday at the Pair-O-Dice Poolroom, upstairs at the Skylark (140 S. Broadway).

Comedians: Check out the Comedy Works comedy lineup at Sobo, 151 S. Broadway, beginning at 8 p.m. Saturday. For a complete lineup of comedians, click here

KGNU Radio live from the UMS: KGNU (1390 AM and 88.5 FM) will be streaming live from the UMS from 4-9 p.m. on Saturday
featuring performances from the outdoor CarToys stage, along with live interviews and more.

Frequently Asked Questions: Q: What the eff does OMG! CIO! mean?

A: It’s text message code for, “Oh my god! Check it out!”

Q: If I don’t have a wristband, can I just pay to get into a show?

A: Nope and sorry, we have to hope that even you will support the local music scene, and pay for a wristband for the event. All the money pays
the bands.

Q: Is there a place to park for this event?

A: There is no designated parking lot for the UMS. We suggest off-street parking, walking, biking, or the bus. Remember, the meters run until 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

Q: Is there anywhere to eat?

A: Oh yes. Most of the venues have great food all the time. Also we will have hot dogs and burgers at the outdoor CarToys stage, and Mezcal will be serving up tacos at The Thrifty Stick on Saturday.

How did all of this start? The Underground Music Showcase was founded in 2001 by then Denver Post music writer,
John Moore, who now covers theater for the paper. He who already had been writing about local music, and wanted to add a live-music component to his yearly a survey of local music experts that crowned Denver’s top acts. This year’s winner was Hearts of Palm. click here to read our feature on the winning band, and click here to check out the 2008 UMS Poll results.
Under the guidance of pop-music critic Ricardo Baca, what was once a four-band bill at the Bluebird Theater is now a 120-band, multi-day festival on a walkable stretch of South Broadway.

The Reverb photo party

Stop by the basement at 3Kings (60 S. Broadway) basement anytime during the UMS to peruse a variety of live music
photography shot by the denverpost.com/reverb team of photographers, including Laurie Scavo, Matt Schild, Julio Enriquez, Glory Anna Breitweiser,
Brian Carney and John Moore.

One of the country’s most prestigious singing competitions for serious young vocalists is setting up shop at the University of Colorado in Boulder for the first time this year – and the public is invited to check it out.